"It could be said that TANK - Kreidler's critically acclaimed previous album - is a drum album. Not in the sense of the brute force of a Ginger Baker or a John Bonham, but more in terms of the elastic muscularity of a Budgie, a Robert Görl or a Klaus Dinger. So in the case of DEN - Kreidler's eleventh regular studio album - , if attempting yet another such broad categorization, one might draw attention to the album's viscous musicality. Indeed, for recording and mixing, Kreidler chose to work at LowSwing, a studio renowned for its round sonic character, with the magnificent Guy Sternberg at the controls. The band has said that they were initially considering making a record without any drums. Fortunately, they did not follow through with that idea. Thomas Klein's playing is an essential component of the Kreidler sound. And if any reference is missing here, then it might be to Jaki Liebezeit of Can, who cultivates a similarly angular groove. All in all, in addition to the musical subtlety and elegant dialogical interaction which is celebrated on Kreidler's new album DEN, it can be stated with enthusiasm that the band has not taken a single step back from its rhythmic force." (label info)